Sunday, April 26, 2009

Imprinting?

This week, after referencing Stephenie Meyer's concept of imprinting, I was pretty much ridiculed. Eh, what's a Twilighter to do out in the real world? However, I have managed to have a civil conversation with one individual, and that led me to wonder how did Stephenie come up with the concept of imprinting?

I'm sure most of the older Twilighters have heard about imprinting occurring in nature and, like myself, decided that was probably the concept that inspired Stephenie's version. It would make sense, after all. The Quileute shapeshifters turn into wolves, which are a form of animal, and it's pretty safe to say that, while they retain their humanity, a bit of animalistic behavior edges its way into their personalities.

However, that assumption runs into some problems. You see, Stephenie Meyer's interpretation of imprinting doesn't exactly correlate with nature's interpretation.

I suppose I should define Stephenie's version first. Wikipedia was kind enough to put it into words for me:

"In the Twilight Series, "imprinting" is the phenomenon where a shape-shifter, after initially transforming, will be unconsciously drawn toward, and then unconditionally attached to a member of the opposite gender, although it is not completely sexual."


That is definitely spot on. Now, it's 9:30 at night and I'm a little sleepy, so I half-heartedly searched for the passage where imprinting is explained. Since I haven't found it, I'll just roughly explain it myself.

When Jacob's imprinting was described, it was said that every cable linking him to everyone else snapped and bonded to Renesmee instead, thicker than wire cables. It tied him to that one person. In general, imprinting connects the imprinter and imprintee. It doesn't have to be sexual, as we saw with both Quil and Jacob. Their partners are very young, and they could never even think of them romantically. They want to be there for them. They want to be whatever they need -- brothers, friends, confidants, mentors, protectors. Now, when Claire and Renesmee grow older, Quil and Jacob may have a change of heart. Romantic love may blossom. However, should either or both girls ever decide they want to venture down a different path, the boys will let them do so. The only thing imprinters want is what's best for their imprintees, and what the imprintees truly desire.

If we tried to apply this to our world's wildlife, most scientists would cry anthropomorphism. (I really hate that term. Science doesn't even have a solid foundation for animal behavior study, so to call anthropomorphism is to do so without basis.) In a way, I agree that this is probably not what imprinting means to real life's animals. Some animals are monogamous; others change partners yearly. So to clarify what science means by imprinting, I'll quote Wikipedia again:

"Sexual imprinting is the process by which a young animal learns the characteristics of a desirable mate. For example, male zebra finches appear to prefer mates with the appearance of the female bird that rears them, rather than mates of their own type (Immelmann, 1972). The famous psychologist John Money called it the lovemap."


Even further, Encyclopedia Brittanica says:

"The duration and time of onset of the sensitive period depend on the species and on the type of behaviour involved. Some animals imprinted to animals of another species will mate with members of their own species but, if given a choice, will prefer the animal to which they have been imprinted. Many species refuse social contact with any animal except the one to which they are imprinted. Male golden pheasants (Chrysolophus pictus) imprinted to humans will court females of their own species but immediately transfer this behaviour to a human, should one appear."


In a way that kind of sounds like Stephenie's version. The animal prefers the imprintee to everyone else. Still, it's not exact, and it got me thinking if there was another definition that Stephenie had used. So I went to Dictionary.com and found this:

"a mark made by pressure; a mark or figure impressed or printed on something."


I felt like both an idiot a genius when I read this. This is the default definition of imprint. I should have realized. To me, that sounds way more like Stephenie's version. Essentially, when a shapeshifter imprints, both their soul and the imprintee's have been impressed upon. They each mark each other's souls; that's what draws themselves to each other. IT MAKES PERFECT SENSE!

Since finding this this afternoon, I've decided that a mark made by pressure is probably what Stephenie meant. It's entirely possible that she combined both ideas or that the psychological behavior of animals inspired her, but... Well, until she addresses this question, I guess we won't know!

What is your theory?

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Eclipse Director Announced

I'm a frequenter of The Twilight Lexicon. In fact, I visit the website multiple times a day, so I pretty much get the news as it comes out. So when it was announced yesterday that a new director had been hired for Eclipse, I knew.

Now, I'm a little wary of this decision at the moment. I'm terrified that the end result will be a situation like X3: The Last Stand, where one director didn't have time, another backed out six weeks before shooting started, and another just effed up the script entirely. We've got about a year before Eclipse even goes into production. A lot could happen in that time frame.

I would say that I was excited at first, but I didn't know who David Slade was, so it really made no difference.

And then I started reading the comments.

Turns out, David Slade directed the movies Thirty Days of Night and Hard Candy, both of which I've seen. Now, I liked Thirty Days of Night, but I didn't think it was ~*amazing*~. Hard Candy, on the other hand...

Okay, for those who don't know, Hard Candy is about a young girl (played by Ellen Page) who meets an older man (played by Patrick Wilson) online and starts chatting with him. Later, the two decide to meet. He takes her back to his place, he wants to photograph her (he's a photographer), and generally, the audience is left thinking, "Oh shit. This guy's gonna rape and kill her!" It's revealed, however, that the girl is a vigilante, suspects this guy of being a pedophile, and tries to expose it.

I love Hard Candy, but I don't know if I'll ever be able to watch it again. In short, it involves torture, entirely enacted by the young girl. It got to the point where I actually felt bad for the guy, who was, in fact a creeper.

But nevertheless, it was a brilliant movie. It was shot in 18 days with a budget of under a million. The lighting scheme is fantastic. During the commentary, it was noted that they wanted to influence the mood with effects other than music, so very little was used. Instead, during an incredibly painful-to-watch scene, they use a track of scissor snippings.

Beautiful. Oh my god... I was worried about how things were transpiring, but I have complete faith in this guy. Chances are, it will be more reminiscent of Twilight -- instead of flashy, which I'm assuming is how New Moon will feel -- but... Wow... I can barely breathe!

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

New Moon Progress

This is pretty much a general update about my thoughts on how the progression of New Moon is doing.

In a phrase, I can sum this post up: I AM EXCITED! However, that one phrase does not contain all of appreciation that I feel, and it's not even half as witty as what you'll read if you continue.

I guess I should start things off by explaining my opinion when I first heard that New Moon was going to be written, shot, edited, etc. in under a year. Frankly, I was pissed. I saw this as a career stunt -- Twilight did so well and the fans are so dedicated that Summit can just slap together a movie, we'll be happy, and they'll make lots of money. From my vague understanding of film, I didn't think this was enough time. Basically, I recalled a comment I read somewhere that a film usually takes 9 months to be shot and created and all that jazz. Considering that New Moon was likely to have way more CGI than in the beginning (giant wolves, transformations, cliff diving scene, sparkling, etc.), 9 months was probably a little short, and eight months was just screwing with us.

Naturally, my impression has changed considerably.

Okay, so the casting pissed me off at first (and I'm still a little sore). Not telling Krys and Solomon that they might be replaced until they actually are? A pretty crappy thing to do. However, since then, they have put a lot of dedicated effort into this project. Dakota and Cameron? Genius. More authentic Native Americans/First Nations? BRILLIANT. It's all started to come together, and I've become very pleased with the progress.

Still, I'm shocked by how quickly this is all piecing together.

According to Christian (aka Angela), the humans are already done filming. Okay, yeah... They have a pretty small part to begin with, so that's understandable. Even so, I was shocked because it's only been a little over a month since production started.

Then I read at the Lexicon that, according to an off-hand comment made by Kellan Lutz, the Cullens may be done filming in Vancouver shortly. This is also understandable because their appearance is pretty minimal as well.

And then there was that clip from the ET special airing on Thursday. You know, the one where, for a split second, we see Taylor is his new wig hopping over the banister of a deck? Um... WOW!

Don't even get me started on this post, where the Lexicon comments on a recent filming sighting. Apparently, there was a scene that involved a pool, and the Lexicon speculates that, due to apartment-sized green screens looming above, this scene may have been part of the cliff diving scene.

O
M
G

Even better, the picture to your right was released a few days ago. Guys and gals, this is the wolf pack, buffed up and without shirts on and UGH! I was seriously dazed for a while... Sol, you could have done just as well as Chaske, but I can't say I'm entirely displeased. And seriously, those tattoos? Great for two reasons -- 1) Because that sets them opposite the Cullens, who have their crests, and 2) because that just adds to the cult vibe that Jake, Quil, and Embry all get. Sam starts this little group, they stick together, are pretty cryptic, and now they're all getting identical tattoos? GREAT DETAIL, GUYS!

It's not even two months into production and I am absolutely pumped. I had my doubts at first, but maybe they will get this on the road by November 20th. What do you think?

Monday, April 13, 2009

Rob for Tokio Hotel?

First and foremost, CONGRATULATIONS, NAOMI! If you've visited the Lexicon in the past day-and-a-half, you've likely seen this interview where the Lex talks to Naomi, who apparently mentioned the Twilight series to Tinsel Korey. Tinsel Korey? Why does that name ring a bell? OH YEAH! It's because she was recently cast as Emily Young!

If this interview doesn't sound familiar to you, go read it; and once again, CONGRATULATIONS!

Thoughts of a Twi-Hard is back to its regularly scheduled program.

So, I'm taking a break from reading this rad fic that Chloe (a fellow Taycober) recommended to me, and I decided to post about an obscure rumor. Now, let me repeat that:

THIS IS A RUMOR!


In fact, the source that's been quoted in saying this has taken the article down. Now, I pride myself in having integrity and not flustering the fans about alleged animosity between Taylor and Robert and such (In fact, I make it a point to poke fun at that crap as much as I can.), but silly little rumors like this are okay by me. I mean, if some poor fan out there gets their hopes up because of this article and is devastated if it turns out to be false, I'm sorry. I will give you my heart in place of your broken one.

I bet you're wondering what exactly this rumor is, right?

Well, according to BellaAndEdward.com and several other sources, a Czech website reported that Robert Pattinson -- our lovely Edward -- is a fan of Tokio Hotel. Now remember, I have no way of verifying this information. The article no longer exists on the website in question and is simply floating around on various blogs and TH and Twilight fansites. It's very likely this is a fabrication.

"Yeah, yeah," you're saying. "Fine. That would actually mean something to me if I knew who the hell Tokio Motel was." Um... Actually, it's Hotel.

THIS is Tokio Hotel.

Before you say anything, yes, I know that the second guy on the right looks like a chick, and yes, I did just say *that guy*. Before you ask me if he's gay, rethink that question: does it matter? If it does, Google it. I'm not here to verify the gays between the hets.

For the real information: Tokio Hotel is a German band that was founded in 2001 by twin brothers Bill and Tom Kaulitz, Gustav Schäfer, and Georg Listing. On Wikipedia, their sound is listed as a mix between pop rock, emo, teen pop, and glam rock. They aren't for everyone, but I think they're rad, and apparently MTV did too, because in 2008, they won the Best New Artist award.

Now that we've got introductions out of the way, I'm sure you're interested in that 'article' I mentioned earlier. Well, here it is:

Actor Rober Pattinson granted an interview and said that Tokio Hotel are great and the best option for the movie soundtrack "New Moon". In an interview with American magazine has shown that the actor is a fan of the band Tokio Hotel.

What do you think of the Twilight soundtrack?
Robert: Sountrack for the film I very good, Paramore are very talented ...

Who would you like to like the soundtrack to the next?
Robert: I like the band Tokio Hotel, have a good sound and lyrics, which are appropriate to the film.

A certain song?
Robert: One song I like and reminds me of the film, Rescue Me!


(Yeah, the grammar's a little off, but this was apparently the Google translation from Czech to English.)

I was absolutely stoked when I read this (And when I was under the impression that this was 100% legit. I'm questioning it now.) See, I'm a huge fan of Tokio Hotel. My obsession started about, oh, two weeks ago, and I can't get enough of them. (I've actually known about them for around two years, but I only decided to check into them last month.) And really, I feel like the Universe is giving me signs of, "HEY! I THINK THEY'RE GREAT TOO!" because I recently found out that a member of my FAVORITE BAND remixed a song of theirs, and now this? Twilight means a lot to me, and one of its actors likes them?

Well, probably not. It's kind of 50-50 right now whether or not this article is the real deal, but I can hope, right?

As far as the statement itself, whether Robert said it or not, I actually agree. Rescue Me is a beautiful song that would fit perfectly with the album. (So would Rette Mich, but I'm assuming the people at Summit and whatever would want an English version. Sigh.)

What I'm going to do is embed a YouTube video of the song with the lyrics, since there is no official video. Listen to it; read it; tell me what you think! And I hope I'm talking to at least somebody. Please, somebody stumble upon this blog and tell me what your opinion is. I'm desperate for some reader interaction!



Personally? VERY Bella to Edward.